Category: 2008 campaign

Frist Still Responding to Visual Stimuli

News of Bill Frist's ethics troubles -- his well-timed dumping of family stock and subsequent probes by both the Justice Department and the SEC -- on top of his base-alienating stem-cell position shift has us wondering: At what point do we pull the feeding tube from his presidential ambitions?

Frist's Political Future Darkens Over Questions on Stock Sales [Bloomberg]

READ MORE: 2008 campaign , bill frist , justice department , sec , senate

Daily Briefing: 'A National Disgrace'

• House will pass $10.5b relief package for the Gulf Coast; officials on the ground complain about the administration's response. Head of emergency management in New Orleans: "This is a national emergency. This is a national disgrace. . . We can send massive amounts of aid to tsunami victims, but we can't bail out the city of New Orleans." [WP, WP, USAT]
• Experts blame "late evacuation order and insufficient emergency shelter." New Orleans Police Superintendent: "We're in our fifth day and adequate help to quell the situation has not arrived yet." [NYT, WP, WT]
• Katrina shows government was unprepared for energy crisis. Bush: "Americans should be prudent in their use of energy. Don't buy gas if you don't need it." [WSJ, WP]
• Democrats say Bush's decision to underfund levee fortification left New Orleans vulnerable. McClellan: "Flood control has been a priority of this administration from Day One. This is not a time for finger-pointing or playing politics." [WP, NYT]
• Al Qaeda takes credit for London bombings in video broadcast by Al Jazeera; group vows more attacks will come. Suspected bomber: "We are at war, and I am a soldier and now you too will taste the reality of this situation." [NYT, WP]
• Gas prices top $6 a gallon in some areas. [USAT]

• Republicans and Democrats plan tough quizzing of Roberts; Democrats may seek delay of confirmation hearings if more documents arrive too late. [WSJ]
• More Pentagon employees confirm Mohamed Atta was identified before 9/11, but no evidence is found. [NYT]
• Gay marriage approved by California Senate. [LAT, WP]
• Liberal advocacy groups clamor for attention to block Roberts. Said one organizer, "Now there is this hurricane. . . We have to do something." [NYT, ]
• Specter seen as unpredictable, maverick force in Roberts' confirmation hearings. [WP]
• Governors Kathleen Blanco (D-La.) and Haley Barbour (R-Miss.) split along party lines when assessing the administration's response to Katrina. [WSJ]
• 160 law professors announce disapproval of Roberts. [WP]
• Potential '08 candidates hit New Hampshire. Huckabee, Kerry, Vilsack, Bayh, Richardson, Feingold, Clark, Edwards, McCain, Hagel, Allen, Brownback have visited. [WP]

READ MORE: 2008 campaign , able danger , al qaeda , arlen specter , gay marriage , george w. bush , house , hurricane katrina , john g. roberts , london bombings , mohamed atta , new hampsire , new orleans , oil , politics , scott mcclellan , senate

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